In Brief: Brown & Toland Expands ACO Effort; MinuteClinics Open in Northern California
Brown & Toland Expands ACO Effort With Cigna
Brown & Toland Physicians has expanded the scope of an accountable care organization initiative with Cigna by adding its physicians who practice in the East Bay.
Brown & Toland added its affiliate, Alta Bates Medical Group, on Oct. 1. It adds 327 physicians to the initiative, which was launched in October of last year. The ACO creates patient-centered medical homes to focus on improving the health of patients with chronic conditions and cutting the costs of caring for them.
“Our ACO model continues to show good results for different patient populations, and our care managers and the entire care coordination team is ready to work with our East Bay doctors to proactively implement programs and services designed to help members achieve better health,” said Richard Fish, Brown & Toland's chief executive officer.
Cigna is involved with the operation of 75 ACOs or ACO-like initiatives in 26 states.
MinuteClinic Enters Northern California Market
MinuteClinic, the retail clinic branch of drugstore giant CVS, has opened its first branches in the Northern California market.
MinuteClinic sites have opened at CVS locations in San Jose, Sunnyvale and Foster City, officials announced this week. Four more MinuteClinics will open next month in the same region.
Currently, CVS operates 35 MinuteClinics in Southern California. The retail clinics offer basic primary care services delivered by a nurse practitioner, with treatments starting around $79.
CVS said the launch of MinuteClinics in Northern California will portend a nationwide launch, with the goal of having 150 sites open by the end of the year. It currently has sites in 27 states. CVS opened its first MinuteClinic in California in 2007.
"MinuteClinic can help support the primary care medical home in California at a time when the nation faces physician shortages coupled with increased patient demand as a result of the Affordable Care Act and an aging population,” said Andrew Sussman, M.D., president of the MinuteClinic division.
Brown Signs Cancer Medication Cost Control Bill
Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a bill into law that caps co-payments for orally administered cancer medications.
AB 219 addresses instances where some oncology patients are facing thousands of dollars a month in co-payments for their medication. Instead, it caps co-payments to $200 a month, with adjustments pegged to general inflation in California. It does not affect insurance policies wherein patients must meet their annual deductible before prescription coverage kicks in.
"This bill...establishes limits that will result in substantial out-of-pocket savings for cancer patients and will prevent patients from abandoning necessary oral treatments for cancer," said California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones.
His office noted that some oncology patients were facing co-payments of $3,000 a month for some cancer medications.
The law goes into effect at the start of 2015. It makes California the 27th state to adopt co-payment caps for cancer drugs.
